NEW YORK RED BULLS

Dwayne De Rosario “In terms of positional, in terms of system, in terms of when things break down – in terms of those kind of things, tactical side of things. Organization in defense, organization going forward; every man for himself."
Linda Cutttone/Sports Vue Images

By Kristian R. Dyer
BigAppleSoccer.com Contributing Editor

HARRISON, N.J. – He may be a rival now but for D.C. United midfielder Dwayne De Rosario, the Red Bulls decision to hire Mike Petke was the right one.

De Rosario had a short stint in New York in 2011, making 11 appearances and scoring two goals for the Red Bulls, who acquired him on April 1 then shipped him to D.C. less than two months later. During that time, the Canadian international played under head coach Hans Backe and Petke, who was then an assistant coach.

There will be a culture shift in how the team approaches the game under Petke, De Rosario said, especially in terms of game preparation and scouting. He didn’t think the Red Bulls were a soft team under Backe, just not prepared.

“I wouldn’t say they lacked the bite and intensity, I’d say they lacked the organization because of the lack of information they were getting,” De Rosario told reporters at Red Bull Arena on Monday.

“In terms of positional, in terms of system, in terms of when things break down – in terms of those kind of things, tactical side of things. Organization in defense, organization going forward; every man for himself. I know when I played there, it was like that.”

It was well known that De Rosario never seemed to gel with the club and with the role he was asked to play under Backe. De Rosario didn’t seem to give Backe too much credit for taking the club to the playoffs three straight seasons and he sees nothing but upside for the decision to promote Petke to the head post.

“I think that was a team that you couldn’t go wrong. He had all the tools, just didn’t know how to use the tools, with no disrespect,” De Rosario said. “I think Petke is the right guy for the job because he’s been with the club, he has respect with the fans, he’s had the opportunity to be an assistant, he’s had an opportunity to learn behind a coach to see that aspect of it. I think he deserves the call and I’m glad they gave him the opportunity.”